


Crossroads of Infinity

by brittyelaine



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Drabble, Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, Love Confessions, M/M, Post-Darkness, Sam Ships It, Sam is a great brother, Season 11, post-lucifer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-09
Updated: 2016-04-09
Packaged: 2018-06-01 07:33:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6508759
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brittyelaine/pseuds/brittyelaine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I think I've always been in love with you, Dean.  Even before I understood what that meant... I loved you."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Crossroads of Infinity

Dean slammed his book shut and closed his eyes, pressing his clasped hands to his mouth as if to calm himself; as if it were the only thing keeping him from the edge. He could feel Sam's eyes on him, but he ignored him, breathing in and out slowly, steadily.

Finally, Sam broke the silence. "Dean?" His voice was soft, calm, and caring. His eyes were fixed on his brother as he leaned forward, closing the old tome in front of him. "We'll figure this out. It'll be okay. Cas... Cas'll be okay." It was then that he saw Dean's shoulders shaking, his face buried in his hands. "Dean?" Without hesitation, Sam rounded the table to lay a comforting hand on Dean's shoulder. "Hey.... Hey, hey, It's gonna be okay."

When Dean finally lifted his head, his eyes were rimmed with red, his cheeks shining with tears, and the look of pure fear and devastation etched into the tired lines of his face. "Sammy, I need him back. I c-- I can't lose him. I lo...." His words fell away as a sob wracked his body. He was too broken, too far gone to feel embarrassment at his vulnerability; at his broken confession to his brother.

Sam pulled Dean into a tight hug, unable to do much more than just be there. "I know, Dean. I know. And so will he. We'll get him back, no matter what."

 

It was this very exchange that gave Sam the good sense to walk away from them three weeks later. They were still reeling from the Great Battle. Amara had been locked away in the Empty, Lucifer had been banished back to the Cage, and Cas.... 

Dean rushed to Cas's side, pulling the beaten and bloodied angel into his arms and sobbed openly into his hair as Sam watched from afar, listening to his brother's choked sobs and Castiel's whispered name floating through the air, heavy with smoke and bloodshed. 

 

Sam kept his distance when the three of them returned to the bunker. Team Free Will, together again. _Dean and Cas_ , together again. He understood how badly they needed time alone; how badly they needed to sort through everything. He had never seen his brother so broken. Not even after losing Lisa. He had known for a long time, of course, if he really thought about it. But here they were, and here it was, out in the open.

It was that reasoning that drove him to announce, two days after their return, that he was going to take off for a while. A Winchester-typical argument ensued, Dean insisting on knowing where Sam was going, Sam refusing to volunteer the information, and Cas finally bringing Dean back down from his rage.

When the bunker door finally swung closed, Cas looked at Dean, gripping the back of a chair. "I believe, if my observation is correct, that Sam wants us to be alone."

Dean scrubbed a hand over his face and nodded. "You're right. He does." He finally brought himself to look at Cas.

Cas's brow was drawn together in confusion as he stood straight, turning toward the hunter. "Why? Do you still want to yell about my choices? About Lucifer?"

Cas's confusion frustrated Dean beyond comprehension sometimes. "Because he knows we need to be alone. Together. To..."

Again, Cas frowned, his head tilted. "Why?"

"Because I'm in love with you!" Dean shouted, his frustration getting the better of him. He clenched his fists, his jaw set tight as he took a deep, ragged breath. "And I'm so... So _goddamn_ pissed that you keep leaving me. And... And I need you to know, once and for all..." He huffed, shaking his head. "There. There it is," he gestured between them, "all out in the open." 

His eyes filled with tears. He took a cautious step toward the bewildered angel. "Damn it, Cas... I _need_ you. Not because you're an angel. Not because you're useful. I _need_ you because I'm so goddamn in love with you, I can't friggin' think." He moved closer yet. Cas was close enough to touch. Dean reached out, grabbing hold of the lapels of the trench coat. "I _need_ you because... I just need you, Cas." His voice lowered to nothing more than a whisper. His eyes searched the angel's. "Cas, say something. Please." 

Cas swallowed, his throat suddenly dry. "I think," he said finally, his voice a low rasp. "I think I've always been in love with you, Dean. Even before I understood what that meant... I loved you."

They held each other then, in the quiet solitude of the empty bunker, allowing themselves the feelings they had tried so hard to suppress for so many years. No longer were they parallels, always so close but never together. Now, after all of the pain, fear and suffering, the universe aligned, their lines overlapped, and they were finally made whole.

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by a photo set on Tumblr. Can't find it for the life of me right now. I'll link when I find it!


End file.
